The present invention broadly relates to a new and improved construction of a transport apparatus or installation for substantially flat or superficial products, especially printed products or the like.
Generally speaking, the transport apparatus or installation of the present development is of the type comprising a plurality of individually controllable grippers or gripper elements which are arranged in succession or behind one another at at least one revolvingly driven traction element as viewed with respect to a predeterminate direction of conveying or conveyance or feed of the products. Each of the individually controllable grippers or gripper elements comprises a clamping jaw and a clamping element, herein generally referred to as a clamping finger, for engaging the substantially flat or superficial products, especially printed products at their leading edges. These products are delivered by an infeed device in an imbricated formation in which each product bears upon the following or trailing product. At a product take-over region the product comes to bear upon the clamping jaw and during a closing movement of the clamping finger, such product is engaged from above.
There prevail imbricated formations of products in which the products are arranged in reposing or bearing contact with one another in imbricated or shingled formation and each product bears upon the next following or trailing product. In such type of imbricated product formation, the leading edge of each product, here then the trailing product, is covered by the preceding or leading product. If such products disposed in such type of imbricated formation must be engaged at their leading edges or regions by grippers or gripper elements for the further transport thereof, then the problem exists that such leading edges are not freely accessible from above. In such imbricated formations of products, the leading edge is usually constituted by the end of the product, the so-called flower or cut portion, which is situated opposite the product fold which is formed upon folding of the products. The engagement of the individual products at their flower or cut portion is difficult because they can fan apart or open at such location.
In Swiss Patent No. 630,583, and the cognate U.S. Pat. No. 4,320,894, granted Mar. 23, 1982, there is disclosed a transport apparatus for such imbricated formations of products, wherein the grippers or gripper elements thereof engage the product at the leading edges, which in this case, however, are formed by the product folds. This transport apparatus serves to further transport the products with the same product arrangement or disposition, in other words, there is maintained the mutual position of the products and the leading edges. The conveying direction of the transport apparatus extends from a lower position to an upper position and transverse to the plane of the products which are to be engaged or seized. The first product of the imbricated or shingled formation is engaged by a gripper at the leading product edge which is not covered or obstructed by any other product and then raised, so that the leading edge of the immediately next following or trailing product which is to be engaged or grasped is freely exposed. In other words, with this prior art transport apparatus the individual products of the imbricated formation are so-to-speak peeled off and the previously covered leading product edges are exposed or laid free. The grippers or gripper elements must be pivotably arranged at a traction element so as to be able to pivot about an axis extending transversely with respect to the product conveying direction and at least at the product take-over region these grippers or gripper elements must be aligned such that the clamping jaws and the clamping fingers can engage the products without damage thereto.